


Test Your Goggles

by Ilthit



Series: Trope-Bingo: Troped [3]
Category: Community (TV), Inspector Spacetime
Genre: Dreamatorium, M/M, Trope Bingo Round 1, Wordcount: 100-1.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-23
Updated: 2013-07-23
Packaged: 2017-12-21 03:48:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/895426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ilthit/pseuds/Ilthit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Troy thinks an early Inspector Spacetime episode had gratuitous fanservice. Abed wants some convincing, considering air date and context.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Test Your Goggles

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tootsiemuppet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tootsiemuppet/gifts).



> Third ficlet today for tootsiemuppet, on the prompt "Inspector!Abed/Constable!Troy, fanservice". Then I put it in the Trope Bingo series for "AU: space" because hey, two birds.

“I’m not convinced it counts as fanservice,” Abed said. “The connotations of the dungeon scene seem obvious today, but this was 1969, when partial male nudity was considered primitive and dramatic, not necessarily erotic.”

Troy paused the DVD and angled himself towards Abed on the opposite arm chair. “You telling me nobody found half-naked dudes hot in 1969?”

“I’m sure they did, it’s just a question of context and what the director would have expected the audience reaction to be. Intent counts; the concept of fanservice demands a certain level of gratuity and conscious titillation. It’s open to debate, though, since despite the essential innocence of ‘60s TV programming, the people who created them didn’t live in a sexual vacuum.”

“Well, I’m saying that whatever the decade, they don’t put sweaty man-abs on TV unless they think people watching are going to get something out of it, you know what I mean? And this is, what, the third time this season? With just seven episodes, that is a lot of shirtless scenes. I’m telling you, whoever produced this season wanted to draw viewers in by flashing some sweet Reggie flesh.”

Abed steepled his fingers and slipped into the Inspector’s accent. “I think this calls for a more intimate examination.”

It was getting late and Annie had gone to bed with a study book over an hour ago, but the Dreamatorium was very nearly soundproof and, for an Inspector Spacetime homage, there would be very little shouting and running. With just three disconnected scenes they should be able to get five hours of sleep and still make it to the morning classes on time.

“Render environment: New Kayaclasch steam house.”

“Blimey, Inspector, it’s boiling in here. How do they stand it?”

“They take their clothes off, Constable. These impostors have done remarkable work recreating the culture of the Infinity Knights, but they will slip up yet. You cannot fool the real thing, and I am the last of my people.”

Troy shook off his Constable Reggie shirt. “What are we going to do about weapons?”

“Until I get my trusty pocketknife back, we have nothing to rely on but our hands and feet. I’m sure either of us is up for a tussle should any of these aliens prove troublesome.”

“Look! Guards!”

Abed ran across the room and turned himself into an alien impostor in minimalist golden armor. “Stop! Intruders!” He ran at Troy, and they threw a few fake punches until Abed (as the guard) had him pinned against the marble wall of the steam house.

“Inspector! Run!” cried Troy over Abed’s shoulder. “Find the Hyperage Gemstone before it’s too late!”

“End simulation.”

Abed looked Troy, cocked his head, and looked at his hand splayed over Troy’s bare chest.

“Well?” said Troy.

“Inconclusive.”

Troy raised both eyebrows. “Really? This is inconclusive? Did you see how minimalist that armor was?”

Abed stepped back and cleared his throat. “Render environment: New Kayaclasch dungeon.”

Troy slumped against the wall. His wrists snapped back against the wall, held there by manacles chained into the jagged rock wall of the dungeon. It may have looked like styrofoam, but it was cold, hard reality for Constable Reggie.

“Reggie!” called Abed from the other side of the barred wall.

“Inspector!” Troy tried to stand up. The rattling of the chains echoed in the empty dungeon.

Abed pressed a finger to his lips to still him. “Quickly, we must get out of here.” He blasted the lock away with his optic pocketknife, yanked the door open, and kneeled next to Troy.

“No, Inspector,” said Troy when Abed reached up to undo the chains. “Leave me. You have to get the Gemstone off this planet. If they notice I’m gone, they will raise an alarm.”

“I can’t leave you here. You’re hurt.” He touched Troy’s arm, turning it towards the meager light from the hallway, revealing strips of red paint on his skin.

Troy raised his hand to cup Abed’s face. “You have to. The galaxy is more important than one associate.”

They sat staring at each other for just a few seconds longer than the Inspector and Reggie had, and then Abed said, “End simulation.”

“Do we even need to run the ocean rescue scene?”

“I’d like to do more research, but I think your point is made.”

“ _Thank_ you.” Troy shook off the last imaginary vestiges of the chains, picked up his shirt and rolled up to his feet. “Special drink before bed?”

“Do you think we could stay up for a little while longer? We could run a gap filler scene. For a deeper understanding of the story context.”

Troy grinned and dropped his shirt. “You don’t have to say it’s for research every time you want to do a slash fic.”

“…It can be both.”

 


End file.
